TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Nov. 29, 2012) - To mark Financial Literacy Month, BMO Bank of Montreal is releasing a series of financial tips throughout November. As part of BMO's commitment to 'Making Money Make Sense', the tips are designed to help individuals and families save and manage their day-to-day finances more effectively.

BMO's Tip of the Day: Create a budget to avoid overspending during the holiday season.

Canadians are in the spending spirit this year and expect to spend an average of $1,610 this holiday season, according to the 2012 BMO Holiday Spending Outlook. Further, more than half (53 per cent) of those surveyed say they often fall victim to impulse spending during the holiday season.

Creating a holiday budget as early as possible and revisiting it often can help keep your holiday spending in check.

"The holidays are often an expensive time of year, and it can be easy to lose track of other financial priorities. It's essential to put a few parameters in place for holiday spending to avoid overextending yourself," said Su McVey, Vice President, BMO Bank of Montreal. "Putting a holiday-specific budget in place ahead of time that sets clear spending limits can keep Canadians from overspending."

Ms. McVey added that Canadians should take advantage of online tools and resources to manage their finances during the holiday season. For example, BMO MoneyLogic is a free, online personal financial management tool that enables customers to create budgets, as well as set and track spending limits.

"CFEE commends BMO's ongoing efforts to support Financial Literacy in Canada and promote ways in which Canadians can increase their competence and confidence when managing their personal finances on a day-to-day basis," said Gary Rabbior, President, Canadian Foundation for Economic Education (CFEE).

Established in 1817 as Bank of Montreal, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified North American financial services organization. With total assets of $542 billion as at July 31, 2012, and more than 46,000 employees, BMO Financial Group provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and solutions.